Is your case stuck in administrative process? We can help you by completing this form.

USCIS surprised by Donald Trump's Muslim Ban

Spread the love

Donald Trump promised early on in his campaign to ban Muslims from entering the United States.  A week into President Trump's term he signed an executive order that banned travel from many Muslim-majority countries.  Airport immigration checkpoints became complete chaos, people being turned away, held in detention centers, or not allowed to board flights home.

Recently released emails show that US Citizenship and Immigration Service, the agency tasked with processing immigration cases, was unaware that there was going to be a policy change, thus the USCIS staff was unprepared to handle the wide-ranging order.  Trump signed the ban on January 27, 2017.

Hours before, Andrew J. Davidson, a senior member of the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate at USCIS wrote to colleagues that he needed "immediate clarification" in the section of the order that barred people from Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen from entering the US.  Donald W. Neufeld, who oversees the facilities that process USCIS application forms, needed "clarity" on which forms would be suspended.

An email on Saturday, January 28, the following morning after the ban was signed, from Daniel Renaud, the associate director of USCIS field operations told dozens of USCIS employees that "until additional guidance is received, you may not take final action on any petition or application where the applicant is a citizen or national" of the seven countries listed above.  Immigrants in the US who had waited years to become citizens were told that their oath ceremony was cancelled.

Later that same night, the temporary head of USCIS's policy and strategy office, wrote on email asking if there was a nationwide stay of the refugee Executive Order because he saw a post on Twitter.

Sunday afternoon, Renaud explained to Field Offices that they can rule on N-400 and N-600 applications,applications for citizenship, and give oath ceremonies to approved candidates.

For more information, click here.

You May Also Like

A Complete Guide To The U.S. Naturalization Test And Interview Spread the love Becoming a U.S. citizen is an exciting and life-changing journey. One of the key steps in this process is taking the naturalization test. This test, administered... VIEW POST
Can You Apply for Naturalization with an Expired Green Card? Spread the love A green card, known as a Permanent Resident Card, serves as evidence of your legal permanent resident status in the US. It allows you to work... VIEW POST
April 2024 USCIS Fees Increase: What You Need To Know Spread the love The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a significant increase in fees for various immigration applications and services. This move has sparked concerns... VIEW POST

Download Free Guide 
2024 Immigrant’s Guide to 
Becoming a U.S. Citizen

This guide contains all you need to know to become  
a U.S. citizen.

Download Free Guide 2022 Immigrant’s Guide to Becoming a U.S. Citizen

This guide contains all you need to know
to become a U.S. citizen.
DOWNLOAD FREE PDF

Immigration 
Answers Show
Live every week.

JOIN US